Here's the quick take on Fox's new series Touch (Wednesday, 8 p.m., Ch. 13):

• The pilot starts slow, but if you pay attention it will suck you in.

• It's a really good hour of TV.

• But ... while it would have made an good movie, it's difficult to imagine how it's going to hold up as a series.

Kiefer Sutherland stars as Martin Bohm, and while this character is supposed to be greatly different from the one he played on "24," he's still a man of action who ends up in the position of trying to save the world.

Martin is a good guy overwhelmed by his circumstances. His wife was killed in the terrorist attack on 9/11; his 11-year-old son, Jake (David Mazouz), is autistic. He's never spoken, and Martin doesn't know how to handle him.

But there's more to the boy than anyone knows. It's not exactly true that he can see the future, but he can see patterns that predict what will happen. And he knows what has to be done to avert disaster.

It's an intriguing idea. And the first hour is indeed worth watching.

But not only is it hard to see how this is a weekly series, it comes to us from executive producer Tim Kring. The man behind "Heroes." And that show started out well only to completely lose its way.

Maybe he's learned from his mistakes. Maybe.

Wednesday's episode of "Touch" is a preview. The series joins Fox's weekly schedule on Monday, March 19.